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Tadhg Purcell (born 2 September 1985) is an Irish
footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...
who plays for Dunbar Rovers FC in the
National Premier League The National Premier League, also known for sponsorship purposes as the Red Stripe Premier League, is sanctioned by the Jamaican Football Federation as the top division for men's association football in Jamaica. Contested between 12 clubs, it ...
. His main position is as a
striker Striker or The Strikers may refer to: People *A participant in a strike action *A participant in a hunger strike *Blacksmith's striker, a type of blacksmith's assistant *Striker's Independent Society, the oldest mystic krewe in America People wi ...
, although he can play on the wing. He spent his youth with
Leicester Celtic Leicester Celtic A.F.C. is an Irish association football club based in Rathfarnham, Dublin. The club's senior team compete in the Leinster Senior League where they have enjoyed reasonable success. Youth sides compete in the Dublin and Distric ...
, before joining
Kilkenny City Kilkenny (). is a city in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region and in the province of Leinster. It is built on both banks of the River Nore. The 2016 census gave the total population of Kilkenny as 26,512. Kilkenn ...
in 2004. He moved onto
Shamrock Rovers Shamrock Rovers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Ruagairí na Seamróige) is an Irish association football club based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club's senior team competes in the League of Ireland Premier Division and it is the most su ...
two years later, and enjoyed a successful three-year spell with the club, helping Shamrock to win the First Division title in 2006. He won a move to English club
Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town. In the 19th century, Darlington under ...
in January 2010, before joining Northampton Town six months later. He was loaned back to Darlington in September 2011, and later went out on loan to Irish side
Cork City Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the island of Ireland. It is located in the south-west of Ireland, in the province of Munster. Following an extension to the c ...
. He joined Australian side Marconi Stallions in March 2013, he then joined Rockdale City Suns in 2014, and North Shore Mariners in 2015. He's played his trade over the past seasons with other Sydney-based National Premier League teams Stanmore Hawks and Dunbar Rovers.


Playing career


Early career

Tadhg Purcell played most his schoolboy career at
Leicester Celtic Leicester Celtic A.F.C. is an Irish association football club based in Rathfarnham, Dublin. The club's senior team compete in the Leinster Senior League where they have enjoyed reasonable success. Youth sides compete in the Dublin and Distric ...
, where he played alongside future teammate Barry Murphy. He also gained success with his St Benildus team, and was part of the under-18s Dublin Soccer champions team at St Benildus College in 2003, when they beat Malahide 1–0 in the final, which was held at Wayside Celtic's ground.


League of Ireland career

Tadgh Purcell originally received a soccer scholarship from
University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland ...
(UCD AFC), where he played the beginning of his senior career. Following the end of his scholarship, Purcell moved to First Division side
Kilkenny City Kilkenny (). is a city in County Kilkenny, Ireland. It is located in the South-East Region and in the province of Leinster. It is built on both banks of the River Nore. The 2016 census gave the total population of Kilkenny as 26,512. Kilkenn ...
, under the management of
Pat Scully Patrick Joseph "Pat" Scully (born 23 June 1970) is an Irish football manager and former player. An accomplished central defender during his playing days, Scully started his career in England, gaining one international cap, two B caps, one U23 c ...
, for the 2005 season. He scored his first
League of Ireland The League of Ireland ( ga, Sraith na hÉireann), together with the Football Association of Ireland, is one of the two main governing bodies responsible for organising association football in the Republic of Ireland. The term was originally use ...
goal on 9 April at Buckley Park. After one season with the "Black Cats", he then moved to
Shamrock Rovers Shamrock Rovers Football Club ( ga, Cumann Peile Ruagairí na Seamróige) is an Irish association football club based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club's senior team competes in the League of Ireland Premier Division and it is the most su ...
for the 2006 season, along with his manager Scully, after Kilkenny City failed to gain promotion from the First Division. He made his Rovers debut in the opening game of the 2006 season. Following a successful first season with the "Hoops", in which Rovers won the First Division title and Purcell became the club's top scorer with 12 goals, he signed a two and a half-year contract in July 2007. The club finished fifth in the
Premier Division Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of gov ...
the following season, and he was top-scorer again in
2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto ...
after finding the net 12 times, also becoming the fourth highest scorer in the league. Scully left the club by mutual consent in October 2008, and was replaced by Michael O'Neill. Although first team opportunities became limited in
2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing ...
he managed to make an impact in many league games but Purcell eventually departed the club in September 2009. He was the first substitute to appear at
Tallaght Stadium Tallaght Stadium ( ga, Staid Thamhlachta) is an association football stadium in the Republic of Ireland based in Tallaght, South Dublin. The club Shamrock Rovers originally announced details of the stadium in July, 1996. The stadium is now ow ...
, and also played as a substitute in a friendly against
Real Madrid Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
. His last goal for Rovers was his only goal in the 2009 season.


Darlington

Purcell signed for Steve Staunton's
League Two The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Le ...
club
Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town. In the 19th century, Darlington under ...
, along with former St Patrick's Athletic midfielder Gary Dempsey, in January 2010. He scored on his debut for the club on 19 January, in a 2–1 win over
Rotherham United Rotherham United Football Club, nicknamed The Millers, is a professional football club based in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The club's colours were initially yellow and black, but changed to red and white around ...
at the
Don Valley Stadium Don Valley Stadium was a sports stadium in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The venue, which was completed in September 1990, hosted the 1991 World Student Games. It was designed by Sheffield City Council's Design & Building Services and nam ...
. He also scored on his home debut in a 2–1 loss to Northampton Town. He scored nine goals in 22 games in 2009–10 to become the club's top scorer, as the "Quakers" suffered relegation out of
the Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
. He rejected a new deal at
The Darlington Arena The Darlington Arena is a rugby union stadium, located in Darlington, County Durham. The arena was opened in the summer of 2003, as the new home ground of Darlington F.C., following the decision to leave their previous ground, Feethams, after ...
following the club's relegation, despite new manager
Simon Davey Simon Davey (born 1 October 1970 in Swansea) is a Welsh former professional footballer and football manager. He is now Head Director of a youth club in America called Southern Soccer Academy. He played for Swansea City, Carlisle United and Pre ...
's attempts to retain him.


Northampton Town

Purcell signed a two-year contract with
League Two The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Le ...
side Northampton Town in June 2010. Manager Ian Sampson stated that: "He is a good finisher, has a lot of physical strength and understands the game. He is a major signing for us and we are delighted." On his first start of the season against
Wycombe Wanderers Wycombe Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. They play their ho ...
, Purcell was stretchered off; it was later revealed that he would subsequently be ruled out for the remainder of the
2010–11 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...
season with ruptured cruciate and lateral knee ligaments. He joined former club
Darlington Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town. In the 19th century, Darlington under ...
on a one-month loan in September 2011, in what "Cobblers" boss
Gary Johnson Gary Earl Johnson (born January 1, 1953) is an American businessman, author, and politician. He served as the 29th governor of New Mexico from 1995 to 2003 as a member of the Republican Party. He was the Libertarian Party nominee for Presid ...
stated was an attempt to regain match fitness. He scored one goal in five
Conference National The National League, known as the Vanarama National League for sponsorship reasons, is the highest level of the National League System and fifth-highest of the overall English football league system. It is the highest league that is semi-profes ...
appearances for the "Quakers", before returning to Sixfields. Purcell joined Tommy Dunne's
League of Ireland The League of Ireland ( ga, Sraith na hÉireann), together with the Football Association of Ireland, is one of the two main governing bodies responsible for organising association football in the Republic of Ireland. The term was originally use ...
side
Cork City Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the island of Ireland. It is located in the south-west of Ireland, in the province of Munster. Following an extension to the c ...
on a four-month loan in February 2012. He scored three goals in 16
Premier Division Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of gov ...
games during his stay at Turners Cross in the 2012 season. Although a permanent contract was offered Purcell decided to move back to the UK. He joined Port Vale on trial in July 2012. He scored a hat-trick for the "Valiants" in a friendly against amateur side
Alsager Town Alsager Town Football Club is a association football, football club, based in Alsager, Cheshire, England. The club are currently members of and play at Wood Park Stadium. Affiliated to the Cheshire County Football Association, they also operate ...
.


Australia

Purcell joined Australian club
Marconi Stallions Marconi Stallions Football Club is an Australian semi-professional soccer club based in Fairfield, Sydney, New South Wales. The club has been crowned Australian champion four times. The Stallions are the soccer team of Club Marconi, a socia ...
in March 2013. He later signed for Northbridge FC in 2015.


Personal life

Purcell was raised in Sandyford,
Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...
and obtained a degree in
Science Science is a systematic endeavor that Scientific method, builds and organizes knowledge in the form of Testability, testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earli ...
at undergraduate level, in
University College Dublin University College Dublin (commonly referred to as UCD) ( ga, Coláiste na hOllscoile, Baile Átha Cliath) is a public research university in Dublin, Ireland, and a collegiate university, member institution of the National University of Ireland ...
(UCD) after leaving
St Benildus College St Benildus College is an all-boys, Catholic secondary school located in Stillorgan, Dublin, Ireland. It was established in 1966 when free secondary education was introduced in Ireland. Founded in 2005, the College was named after the De La Salle ...
. Before going to St Benildus College he attended
Catholic University School Catholic University School ''(C.U.S.)'' is a private (voluntary) secondary school for boys in Dublin, Ireland. The school was founded in 1867 by Bartholomew Woodlock as a preparatory school for the Catholic University of Ireland, the predeces ...
(CUS) for three years.


Honours

Shamrock Rovers *
League of Ireland First Division The League of Ireland First Division ( ga, Céad Roinn Sraith na hÉireann), also known as the SSE Airtricity League First Division, is the second level division in both the League of Ireland and the Republic of Ireland football league system. ...
: 2006


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Purcell, Tadhg 1985 births Living people Republic of Ireland men's association footballers University College Dublin A.F.C. players Kilkenny City A.F.C. players Shamrock Rovers F.C. players Cork City F.C. players Darlington F.C. players Northampton Town F.C. players Republic of Ireland expatriate men's association footballers Irish expatriate sportspeople in Australia Expatriate men's soccer players in Australia Marconi Stallions FC players Rockdale Ilinden FC players League of Ireland players English Football League players National League (English football) players Alumni of University College Dublin Leicester Celtic A.F.C. players Association footballers from County Dublin Men's association football forwards Men's association football midfielders